


when she calls your name you fall to your knees

by SilverHeart09



Category: Doctor Who
Genre: F/F, cheeky bit of Thasmin in the last chapter, multi-chapter fic, space wives with explosions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-28
Updated: 2018-12-13
Packaged: 2019-09-01 20:24:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 12,757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16772275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilverHeart09/pseuds/SilverHeart09
Summary: 'She would probably have ignored this message if it hadn’t been written in Gallifreyan. And if it didn't have a ‘x’ at the end of it.'The Doctor gets an invite to a party to celebrate New Year via the Psychic Paper that could only have come from one person. Shenanigans ensue.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This will be a multi-chapter 13/River fic, with mentions of Ryan, Graham and Yaz! 
> 
> Title is 'Indestructible' by The Fratellis.

The Doctor popped her head out of the TARDIS door and had a brief look around.

The grand staircase in front of her and the music coming from behind the doors at the top of the stairs told her she was in the right place, as did the smartly dressed steward smiling at her, clipboard in hand.

‘Good evening, you must be the Doctor.’

‘Must I?’

She stepped out of the box and hurriedly checked her psychic paper.

_The Bralium Ballroom, 31st December 4023. Fancy a dance? x_

Truth be told, she would probably have ignored the message. She got the occasional spam through to the psychic paper. Pizza deals, tradesmen flyers, curry house leaflets. She would probably have ignored this message if it hadn’t been written in Gallifreyan. And if it didn't have a ‘x’ at the end of it.

‘Yes, you’re on the guest list. There’s a note here saying you’d be bringing a blue box with you. Don’t worry about your ship, ma’am. It’s safe here.’

 _Ma’am._ Nope. Still wasn’t used to it.

‘Does your guest list saying if I’m accompanying anyone?’ the Doctor asked, closing the TARDIS door and trying to walk in her high heels. Stupid decision really. She just wants to look nice and Yaz always looks fantastic whenever she’s in heels. _Of course, who I’m looking nice for is another question,_ the Doctor thought.

‘No no, it’s a personal invitation for you,’ the steward said, beaming. ‘Although there is a note here saying that your plus one is your wife, Dr Song. She’s already here, waiting for you in the dining room.’

The Doctor literally felt her hearts skip a beat.

‘Top of the stairs, through the doors and on the left,’ the steward said. ‘Have a pleasant evening.’

With one last longing look at the TARDIS, the Doctor slowly made her way up the stairs in her heels. She’d practised for hours wearing them, walking up and down the TARDIS stairs until even the ship got fed up with her. It didn't seem too difficult, just had to arch your back a little bit more. These stairs were narrower than the ones she’d been practising on however, and she found she had to walk up them at an angle so her feet didn't slide off the edge. She really hoped the steward wasn’t looking, she felt ridiculous.

There was another steward at the top but fortunately he only noticed her once she’d made it and was straightening her back, feeling rather proud of herself for making it up the stairs without so much as a slip.

‘Doctor, an absolute pleasure to welcome you to the Bralium’s Annual New Year’s Eve Ball. Your wife is waiting for you in the dining room, have a wonderful evening.’

The doors opened, and the Doctor stepped through.

* * *

The party was already in full swing. An orchestra was situated at the front of the ballroom playing soft jazz music whilst waltzing couples danced across the floor. A waiter approached her with a glass of something on a tray and she took it gratefully. She hadn’t felt this nervous in a long time. Is this what dates were like?

_Don’t be stupid. This isn’t a date, you’re married. Wait. Married people can have dates. Crap._

She sniffed the glass and then took a big gulp. Mmm Werlian wine, that was going to go straight to her head.

She made her way around the side of the ballroom, sipping her wine, glad she’d spruced herself up a bit. Her usual outfit would have made her stick out like a sore thumb in this room full of the galaxy’s wealthiest philanthropists, decked from top to bottom in jewels and expensive fabrics.

_Is that why River’s here? Is she here to steal something?_

The ballroom was ridiculously grand. High arched ceilings, gold and diamond decor, a tiled floor that cost more than everything in American combined. Even the musicians’ instruments were made of rubies.

‘Doctor! Well well, look at you.’

The Doctor looked up to see Grand Duchess Traylia Bralium gliding smoothly towards her across the floor. She kissed her graciously on either cheek and stepped back to admire her.

‘Well aren’t you a picture,’ she murmured. ‘Never been a woman before have you? How’s it suiting?’

‘I’m enjoying it,’ the Doctor said, smiling at her hostess and trying to hide her nerves.

‘Well you look absolutely gorgeous,’ Traylia said. ‘So sorry I had to go through your wife to send you the invitation, you’re a little hard to get hold of! Have you seen Dr Song yet?’

‘No, I’m on my way to her now,’ the Doctor said, even the mention of her wife’s name enough to send the butterflies flapping anxiously in her stomach.

‘Well I won’t keep you, we must catch up later though. Have a wonderful evening, wine on the house!’

Traylia glided away and the Doctor nervously approached the door of the dining room, gulping the rest of the wine and grabbing another glass from a passing tray.

_Here goes nothing. Don’t fall on your face. Urgh why did I think that?? Now I’m definitely going to fall on my face. What if she thinks I’m ugly? Oh for goodness sake, Doctor just open the door._

She spotted River immediately, she was impossible to miss. Leaning up against the side of the bar, flirting shamelessly with a young man in a smart jacket. Floor length golden gown, curls pinned up against her head, wearing lipstick (and heels) that could kill.

She suddenly found that she was unable to move.

_Why did I do this? Crossing my own timeline. Terrible decision. I should just leave, I’ve seen her now, just go OH SHIT SHE’S LOOKING AT ME._

Young man in a smart jacket forgotten, River was now staring at her wife stood awkwardly in the doorway. The Doctor wasn’t really sure what to do. Did she recognise her? Is this another spoiler she isn’t aware of? Should she just turn around and walk out?

River said something to the young man, eyes not breaking contact with the Doctor’s, and crossed the room towards her, hips swaying in her dress, a smile breaking out on her face as she reached the Doctor.

' _H_ _ello_ sweetie.’

The Doctor relaxed. ‘Oh good, you do recognise me.’

‘Paralysed awkward looking alien stood in the doorway staring at me? Yes, does kind of give it away.’

River walked around the Doctor in a way that made the Time Lord think that she was _definitely_ being sized up. She stopped in front of her and her smile was impossible, stretching all the way from her lips to her eyes and then some.

‘Your dress sense has definitely improved though. You are absolutely gorgeous.’

The Doctor positively ruffled at the compliment. She’d really tried hard with her appearance this evening, choosing a fitted burgundy suit with a smart white blouse instead of a dress, strappy black heels on her feet. She’d even had a go at curling her hair and putting makeup on.

‘Really?’

‘Really.’

River leaning in and kissed her gently, hands placed delicately on her waist.

‘You even smell good,’ she said when she pulled away.

The Doctor didn't mention she’d helped herself to Yaz’s perfume, she definitely wouldn’t be telling Yaz.

‘It’s really, _really,_ good to see you,’ the Doctor said, smiling broadly.

‘You’re so northern this regeneration!’ River exclaimed. ‘I _love it.’_

And then, of course, because what else could possibly have happened next, there was a loud explosion and they were thrown into the air.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all the kudos and comments! Here's chapter 2 ^_^

Ringing. Ringing in her ears and a weight on her legs, something heavy, digging into her skin painfully. The muffled sounds of shouting and screaming as her hearing slowly started to come back.

‘Urrgh.’

‘Don’t worry, you still look great. I’m into that “just got exploded look”, it’s very sexy.’

The Doctor opened her eyes. Had the ceiling had that many holes in it before? She sat up slowly, shaking her head to try and dislodge that god awful _ringing._ It was pandemonium around her, bodies littered the dancefloor, some slowly getting up like her, others not. The lights had gone out and the ballroom was dark, only the emergency lighting on the floor and in the walls brightening the once-beautiful room. It was mainly rubble now.

‘... your sonic screwdriver?’

Her hearing came back to her suddenly, River’s voice cutting through the fog. She looked up at her blankly.

‘What?’

‘I said - do you have your sonic screwdriver?’

‘What happened to the one I gave you?’

Part of the ceiling had fallen on the Doctor’s leg and she slowly eased her limb out from under it, carefully standing and looking around blankly, trying to get her bearings.

River was staring at her.

‘You give me a sonic screwdriver?’

‘Oh. Crap. I mean, spoilers. Here.’

She thrust the sonic at River and didn't miss the way her eyebrows shot up into her hairline.

‘Where _were_ you hiding that?’

The Doctor fixed her with a look. ‘You know women’s clothes don’t have pockets.’

‘A fashion travesty, I agree.’

She waved the sonic over a lump of metal on the ground at her feet, the Doctor recognising it as the outer shell of a Arcanian land mine.

‘What on earth is that doing here? The Bralium-Arcanian war was over years ago.’

‘Not to everyone, by the looks of it.’ River frowned over the casing. ‘There’s traces of Artron energy.’

The Doctor knelt down next to her and carefully placed her hand on the casing, the last golden wisps of Artron energy weaving into her fingers before dispersing.

‘This thing is centuries old,’ she said, shocked. ‘Someone has sent this here, to this specific spot, displaced it through time for the singular purpose of blowing up this ballroom.’

‘We need to find that guest list, check if there are any Arcanian’s on it with a grudge.’

‘Wait…’ the Doctor said, before River started to run off to find the steward. ‘Did you know this was going to happen?’

River turned back and walked back over to the Doctor, taking her hands. ‘No, honestly. I just wanted to go to a party with my… oh god. I’ve waited so long to say this. With my _wife.’_

Despite the chaos and terror around them, the Doctor felt her hearts swell.

‘Plus we’ve not had a proper adventure together for a while and this one includes Artron energy, which is kind of your thing.’

‘It does seem to be coming up a lot recently,’ the Doctor said, frowning. ‘Fine. Let’s find the steward and get a good look at that guest list.’

* * *

The steward was placing an SOS call when they found him by the doorway but he didn't seem to be having much luck.

‘Someone’s cut the power to the communication systems,’ he wailed. ‘I can’t contact anyone for help. We’re running on emergency power, all the doors have sealed so no-one can get in.’

‘Sounds like a bit of a design flaw,’ River pointed out as the Doctor pulled a cover off of a control panel and stuck her sonic in it, looking around. ‘It was an Arcanian bomb that caused this. How many Arcanian guests do you have?’

‘B...b….but that’s not possible,’ the steward stammered. ‘We have a peace treaty with them, they wouldn’t dare attack us.’

‘They’ve sent the bomb from the past,’ the Doctor mumbled, sounding like she had something in her mouth. River had a quick look. Yep, she had the sonic in-between her teeth as she poked around with the power leads.

The steward paled.

‘How many Arcanian guests?’ River again.

‘N...n...not many, I t….t….think,’ the steward said nervously, waving his hand over a data-watch on his wrist, bringing up the guest list. ‘Five, only five.’

‘Where are they?’

‘I don’t know. Here, somewhere.’

‘Do you have a back-up back-up generator?’ the Doctor asked with her head in the wall. ‘In case the back-up fails?’

‘Of course, it’s in the basement,’ the steward said, confused.

‘And it doesn’t have a separate communication system?’ River asked.

‘Well… it should do. It’s supposed to. There’s three generators in total, the main one has been destroyed and the back-up is currently running, then we have the back-up back-up if the back-up goes down.’

‘Gosh, try saying that drunk,’ the Doctor’s muffled voice sounded through the wall. ‘In the basement you said?’

‘Yes,’ the steward said. ‘You won’t be able to get down there though, not without power. The stairs don’t go down that far, health and safety reasons.’

‘Okay, next question.’ The Doctor pulled her head from the wall and River recognised _that_ look immediately. ‘Do you have a dumbwaiter?’

* * *

There was a dumbwaiter, as it turned out, and it was just big enough to fit River and the Doctor in, albeit with a bit of squeezing and elbow work.

‘This is the greatest day of my life,’ River said smugly as they rode it down to the basement, the Doctor pressed awkwardly against her wife’s front.

‘I’m glad you’re having fun,’ the Doctor said. ‘This is super uncomfortable for me.’

‘So where are we, in our timeline?’ River asked, cautiously. ‘Because you certainly haven’t given me a sonic screwdriver yet and last time we met you were definitely not this attractive.’

‘I’m always attractive!’ the Doctor protested and yep, there was a hand making its way slowly up her chest.

‘Your chin was a tad bigger,’ River whispered sultrily.

The dumbwaiter dinged and the Doctor scrambled out before River’s hand made it any higher.

The basement was cold and dark, the emergency lighting not so bright down here and the cobbled floor made it even more difficult for the Doctor to walk, staggering slightly in her heels, River laughing behind her.

‘You look like a penguin!’ she giggled.

‘Why do I keep getting compared to penguins,’ the Doctor grumbled, waving her sonic at the back-up back-up generator.

‘Remind me why we came down here?’ River asked. ‘It’s a bit cold.’

‘Because of that,’ the Doctor said, pointing at the generator with her sonic. 'This building has three separate backup communication systems attached to the generators and all of them have gone down. The steward isn't going to be able to send an SOS and the generators aren't going to last for long, maybe an hour before we’re completely in the dark.’

‘That’s not such a bad thing,’ River purred, suddenly very close to her ear. ‘We can achieve a lot of things in the dark.’

‘I’m not sure getting out of here is going to be one of them though,’ the Doctor said, frowning at her sonic.

‘Doctor.’

She turned, recognising that tone. ‘What?’

River gently stepped forward and placed one hand on her waist, the other tangling in the soft curls of the Doctor’s hair.

‘I know it’s not your fault that we keep getting our date nights interrupted by alien invasions from the past. But I honestly only wanted to dance with my wife on New Years Eve and now this is going to turn into a big thing. So, before we save this planet I want you to promise me that I will get a dance at the end of all of this.’

‘River…’

The Doctor carefully wrapped her arms around River’s waist, feeling daring all of a sudden. She tried to stay calm and composed but her inner monologue was going a little something like _eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee._

She leaned forwards and pressed her lips against River’s, feeling her eyes slide shut as she pulled her wife closer towards her. River backed her up against the generator and then they were _really_ kissing. The pent up rage and frustration at River’s unfair death poured out of the Doctor as she tugged at River’s hair, the unfairness of the universe to keep throwing second chances at her when she’d already said goodbye and come to terms with her death. The old wound being ripped open every time she saw that familiar blue diary on the shelf, or the photo of River on her desk. Hands grabbed at her chest and River’s tongue was in her mouth and for a second it was just the two of them alone in the universe, no alien invasion, no planet to save, no companions that could walk in on them at any second, just the Doctor and River Song.

_This isn’t fair. We shouldn’t be doing this. Oh god we shouldn’t be doing this. URGH what is she doing with her tongue._

They pulled back, breathless, and River looked straight down the Doctor’s cleavage.

‘Is that a sonic screwdriver down your bra, or are you just glad to see me?’

The Doctor glanced down. The buttons of her blouse had definitely come up to her neck a few seconds ago.

_When did she undo the buttons? Damn she works fast._

Not that it really mattered, her once smart outfit had been singed and torn by the explosion that had rocked the ballroom. Miraculously her heels were still in one piece, but she had picked them up on the planet of Louboutin. Those shoes were made to withstand… well… an explosion.

‘No pockets,’ the Doctor grumbled. ‘Psychic paper is down there too, and my lipstick, and the TARDIS key, and also a tube of wine gums, just in case I get hungry.’

River went to kiss her again but the Doctor paused her with a finger to her lips, her sharp hearing suddenly picking up on something else. She pulled away from River and walked around the back-up generator she’d been leaning on, prowling around it like a cat.

_What is that?_

But even as she tugged the cover off the generator she knew what it was. There was only one thing that made a ticking noise like that. There was a reason the ticking crocodile in Peter Pan was supposed to be herald of doom.

The generator had another Arcanian bomb inside, much larger than the first, and ticking steadily down. This one wouldn’t just take out a ballroom, this one would take out a chunk the size of Europe.

_One hour left. One hour to save everyone in this building. One hour to diffuse a bomb that needs three._

The Doctor looked up at River, who was staring down into the casing, horror on her face. The Doctor looked down at her watch and sighed.

‘I told the fam I’d be home in time to watch the fireworks with them.’


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for everyone's comments and lovely messages ^_^ You brighten up my day <3
> 
> River won't meet Team TARDIS in this, but I have already written the ending which is a cute reunion between the Doctor and her fam :)

‘Okay, what do we do, what’s the plan?’ River asked, watching as the Doctor soniced the bomb.

‘Urgh can’t defuse it, there’s a temporal lock on it. I mean I could defuse it, but it would take longer than an hour. And I’d need three other Time Lords, and a Large Hadron Collider, and also some biscuits.’

‘So what do we do?’ River said, trying to cut the Doctor off before her rambling intensified.

‘We need to move it somewhere it won’t do any harm, we need to find somewhere safe we can send it where there’s no people around, somewhere it can go off and it won’t cause any damage.’

Her head snapped up and she grinned at River. 

‘We need to jettison it into space.’ 

‘You do realise we’re on a planet, right?’

‘And you do realise that planet’s hang in space, right?’

‘Ooh you’re snarky. I married the wrong regeneration.’

‘Oi!’ 

‘Kidding, sweetie.’

The Doctor knelt in front of the generator, looking thoughtfully at the bomb in front of her.

‘The Bralium-Arcanian war was over centuries ago but I bet they still have their technology. I vaguely remember hearing about a photon slingshot that they used to throw photon weapons at the Arcanian ships orbiting the planet. If we could get our hands on one of those, we could throw this thing into space and it could go off without hurting anyone.’

‘But why are they doing this?’ River said. ‘The war is over, why go to all the trouble of sending a bomb through from the past to blow up this one specific part of the planet?’

‘We’re in the Bralium palace, aren’t we?’ the Doctor said. ‘The seat of the Bralium empire’s power, with its Grand Duchess, assuming she’s still alive, hosting a party for the galaxy’s rich and powerful. Why not send it here? You can take out the Bralium government, its leader, and its allies in one blow.’

‘Then why haven’t they done that already? Why is there two bombs?’

The Doctor frowned and tapped her sonic against the palm of her hand. ‘Temporal projection through time isn’t easy,’ she said. ‘You’d need a portal or a time vortex and even then you’re never quite sure what’s going to happen.’

‘Like you piloting the TARDIS.’

‘Now who’s snarking!’

‘So the first bomb was a test?’

‘Yes, I think so. A test to see if it could make it here from the past with the second bomb waiting to blow once the first detonates, with an hour overlap in case anything goes wrong. They hid it in the basement, knowing nobody would be able to get down here with the power off, forgetting that I’ve always wanted to ride a dumbwaiter. And get on a conveyor belt.’ She scowled and kicked at the ground crossly. ‘Stupid Kerblam. Ryan and Yaz got a go.’

She straightened up and caught River staring in awe at her.

‘What?’

‘Nothing, it’s just…’

Battered, covered in dirt and dust from the explosion, suit ripped and curly hair messed around her face, large green eyes staring confusingly back at her, the Doctor had never looked more gorgeous to River. There was a cut on her temple that had leaked blood onto her face she hadn’t seemed to have noticed and her top buttons were still undone from where River had grabbed at them but she was on fire. Not literally of course, but the sheer amount of  _ don’t mess with me  _ emanating from her small frame was making River weak at the knees.

‘You’re staring at me,’ the Doctor said, suddenly  _ directly in front of her.  _ ‘Are you alright?’

‘You’re beautiful.’

The Doctor  _ flushed.  _ Honest to gods her cheeks went bright pink.

‘Ooh that’s new, I like that.’

‘Stop it,’ the Doctor said, but there was a smile on her face. ‘Get rid of the bomb first, then we can flirt.’

‘Oh sweetie, there is going to be a lot more than just flirting,’ River said, waggling her eyebrows suggestively.

‘If you two are quite finished.’

And an Arcanian stepped out from the shadows and pointed a gun at them.

* * *

‘I’ll admit I was thinking about you tied up, but it wasn’t quite like this,’ River said, tugging lightly at the ropes around her wrists.

‘Will you knock it off?’ the Arcanian said crossly, standing guard over the two women back to back on the floor in front of him, thick ropes around their chests and wrists.

‘Why? We making you uncomfortable?’ the Doctor said. ‘Is it because of the flirting or because we got down here and figured out your plan so quickly?’

The Arcanian scowled at her.

‘The war is over, has been for centuries, this quadrant is enjoying the longest period of peace its had for years and you’re jeopardising that, why?’

‘You think all Arcanian’s are happy with the peace treaty?’ he glared at her. ‘We wanted absolute power in this quadrant and the Bralium’s ruined that for us. They destroyed our fleet, our technology, half of our planet and landed us with a peace treaty that threatened total annihilation if there was ever another rebellion.’

‘I’m sorry about your planet, but surely peace is better than war?’

He sneered at her. ‘How could you possibly understand?’

The Doctor went very still and fixed him with a dark look. ‘I’m a Time Lord,’ she said quietly, an edge to her voice as sharp as a knife. ‘I’m one of the very few people in this universe who could understand.’

‘And you’re honestly telling me the Time Lords wouldn’t wipe out the Daleks any way they knew how? You’re telling me that they won’t come from the past to bring their people back to glory?’

A series of images flashed through the Doctor’s head.

_ Wilfred, Donna, a white point star, the sound of drums, the Master… _

_ Get out of the way. _

The Arcanian took her silence as answer enough. 

‘Your people were arrogant and reckless and they caused their own destruction, just as the Bralium’s will shortly do. I am part of a resistance movement in this century, fighting back against our oppressors. Our weapons were confiscated as part of the peace treaty so we had to go back through time to take them and bring them here where we will destroy the Bralium First Family and her allies and reclaim this part of space.’

‘You’re completely mad,’ River said, staring at him. ‘Do you hear yourself? Travelling back through time to steal weapons? Blowing up a substantial part of the planet just to kill the Grand Duchess? Do you even know the radius of that weapon? Do you even know how many children live in the villages that surround the palace? All that to provoke outright war when there is finally peace.’

A flicker of doubt crossed the Arcanian’s face for a moment at the mention of the children, but then his hard resolve was back again.

‘There are always casualties in war,’ he said quietly. ‘I’m sure you know that better than anyone, Doctor.’

The Doctor looked at him. It was not a nice look.

‘Yes, I know who you are. I saw your TARDIS parked downstairs. I know you as well, Dr Song. The woman who married him. Sorry,  _ her.  _ Some power couple you two are.’

He pointed the gun at the Doctor’s head. 

‘I know you hate guns, so it seems fitting you should die by one. And don’t think I’m going to let you regenerate.’

‘You know what?’ the Doctor said suddenly. ‘I’ve just remembered something about your people.’

‘And what’s that?’

The Doctor whistled loudly, shrilly, and the Arcanian dropped the gun, falling to his knees with his hands pressed tightly over his ear, River reaching out and kicking the gun away from him.

‘You hate high pitched noises.’

She tugged her hands free of the ropes and stood up, helping River to her feet and towering over him in her heels.

River was  _ extremely  _ turned on.

‘How did you get out of the ropes?’ the Arcanian said, staring at her. His steel mask slipping for a moment, a hint of fear creeping into his eyes.

‘Me and Houdini were bessie mates. And now it’s your turn.’

Once he was tightly bound the Doctor reached into the generator and lifted out the bomb. It was small, about the size of a football and she scowled at the timer.

‘45 minutes left. I could have really done with those 15 minutes. Right, back in the dumbwaiter. We need to find Traylia and find out where the weapons are kept.’

The dumbwaiter was even more cramped with the bomb in there too and River pressed up tightly against her wife, searching for her hand and clasping it in hers.

‘Can I just say,’ she said softly. ‘I’m really glad you’re here, and I’m kind of enjoying myself. Is that bad?’

The Doctor grinned and shrugged. ‘I’d expect nothing less to be honest, and I’m glad you’re here too.’

Then something above them snapped and the dumbwaiter started to free fall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I'm really not sorry about the cliffhangers


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear I proof-read these like ten times and there's still odd mistakes! Thank you to everyone who's been pointing out the more obvious ones, like how I missed the 's' on the end of 'heart' for the Doctor, still cringing about that one.
> 
> Also someone asked how I get so much content out in a day - I work in administration and this is one of our down periods where I literally have NOTHING TO DO.

The dumbwaiter stopped suddenly just before it hit the ground and River and the Doctor stayed very still, hardly even daring to breathe. There was a creaking sound coming from the shaft above them and they could feel a juddering feeling throughout the small box, vibrating the walls and making it seem even less stable than it already was.

‘Okay…’ River said, slowly. ‘Got a plan for this one?’

‘There should be two cables,’ the Doctor said, looking up at the ceiling. ‘I only heard one of them snap, the other must have caught us but it’s probably jammed. I think I might be able to use the sonic to get us moving again.’

‘Well this is nice and cosy,’ River said as the Doctor fumbled for her sonic.

‘Um…’

‘Yes, sweetie?’

‘I can’t reach my sonic.’

‘The sonic that’s in your bra?’

‘Yes.’

River smirked. ‘Well well, what are we going to do about that then.’

‘Can I remind you please,’ the Doctor said, already feeling that infuriating pink blush spread to her cheeks. ‘That we are running on borrowed time here.’

‘I just want to take a moment to remember the look on your face right now,’ River said, pausing dramatically and closing her eyes for a few seconds. She opened them again. ‘Right, that’s stored in there for the rest of my life, lets go apple bobbing.’

And she shoved her entire face in her wife’s cleavage and for a second the Doctor was completely sure that she was having an out-of-body experience. Not only was River, completely unnecessarily, _nuzzling her chest,_ she was also pretty sure that River was _licking her nipple._

‘Um - sonic, just - gah, grab the sonic,’ the Doctor stammered, head hitting the back of the dumbwaiter as she closed her eyes and tried to ignore the pangs of desire throbbing through her body.

River pulled her head back up, sonic between her teeth, an absolutely _filthy_ look on her face, eyes sparkling.

‘There’s more where that came from, sweetie,’ she said, dropping the sonic into the Doctor’s hand.

Who then dropped it on the floor.

They both looked down at where it had landed by the Doctor’s foot and River gave her a look.

‘Hey! You were… distracting me.’

‘I’ll do a lot worse than distract you later.’

‘Urgh this isn’t helping.’

‘Well we’re stuck now, might as well make the most of our last moments together before the cable snaps and we plummet to the ground,’ River said, already gently tugging her fingers along the waistband of the Doctor’s trousers.

The Doctor kicked off one of her heels and started searching the floor with her foot, wriggling as far down the wall as she could without ending up with her face planted in River’s cleavage. River wasn't helping with that.

‘Ooh you’re wriggly this time around.’

‘Will you just…’

Her toes found the sonic and the Doctor gripped it as hard as she could, carefully bending her leg to bring the sonic to her hand.

_‘Aaand flexible.’_

‘RIVER.’

‘You know we could just stay here for a bit longer, no hurry,’ River purred, one hand finding its way to the Doctor’s neck, lips pressing against her soft skin, making her wife’s head spin.

‘You mean aside from the bomb?’

River sighed. ‘You always know just how to kill the moment.’

‘This - me and you stuck in a dumbwaiter - isn’t a moment!’

‘It really could be. Have I mentioned you smell amazing?’

‘Oh my god.’

Sonic back in the Doctor’s hand, she carefully aimed it behind her in the rough direction she thought the control pad was in and turned it on. Immediately the lift began to move, carrying them upwards. As soon as the doors opened on the ballroom floor they clambered out of it as fast as they could and not a moment too soon, the cable snapping and dropping to the ground below, the dumbwaiter smashing to pieces.

‘Aw,’ the Doctor said, sadly.

The ballroom was in chaos. Injured guests were sitting up against the wall looking lost, the room was filled with the sounds of wailing and coughing and debris still rained down from the ruined ceiling.

‘That’s what a bomb 1/100th of this one did,’ the Doctor said, darkly. ‘Imagine what this one will do. We better get a shift on.’

The Grand Duchess came running over as soon as she spotted them, her once magnificent ballgown ripped and filthy. She’d been ripping large strips of fabric from the skirt as temporary bandages for her guests and it hung in tatters around her legs.

‘Doctor! Dr Song! I’m so glad you’re okay, what’s going on? Where have you _is that an Arcanian bomb??!’_

‘Hush,’ River said, shushing her quickly. ‘It’s a long story, but we’re on top of it. We can’t defuse this bomb so we need to get rid of it. Do you have any photon slingshots here? In the palace?’

‘Y-y-yes, they’re in the bunker underground. Are we under attack?’

‘Yes,’ the Doctor said. ‘But I really don’t have time to explain, I’ve only got 35 minutes to get this into space. Stay here with your guests and don’t worry about us, we’ll get it sorted.’

Traylia nodded blankly, unsure of what else she could really say.

‘How do we get down to the bunker?’ River asked. ‘And please don’t say the lift or the dumbwaiter.’

‘Who climbs in a dumbwaiter?’ Traylia asked, surprised. ‘I thought that only happens in movies.’

The Doctor and River gave each a quick glance.

‘We use bio-scanners connected to teleport pulses to get into the bunker,’ Traylia said. ‘For security of course. Come with me.’

The scanners reminded the Doctor of the ones on Kerblam, but she flat out refused to have a blood sample taken to read her genetic material. Even if it was ‘more secure.’

‘You understand, my people aren’t exactly the most popular race in the universe,’ she explained, apologetically.

‘Of course, we can do it the old fashioned way, please step into the scanner,’ Traylia said, indicating the small platform inside a vertical glass container.

The Doctor caught sight of her reflection in the scanner as the blue light went over her body. A scan was okay, she just didn't fancy the idea of someone having access to a sample of her blood. She thought back to the Sycorax invasion all those years ago. Blood was a dangerous thing.

She contemplated her reflection. The short blond (although it was mostly black with dirt now) hair that hung to her chin, the scrape across her face from the explosion that had left a trail of blood across her cheek. Her ruined suit with the top buttons on her blouse still undone, not enough to show anything, but definitely more than she was used to showing.

She caught a whiff of Yaz’s perfume drifting off her neck and felt her hearts contract. It felt wrong to be off having adventures without her fam. Not that they’d be safe here, but then they weren’t safe anywhere.

She found herself missing Yaz more than she thought she would, and a glance up at River, who was watching her curiously, as though she knew what she was thinking, only succeeded in confusing her even more.

_Yaz is great, Yaz is awesome, Yaz is my best mate. But why does it hurt this much?_

The scanner finished and the Doctor stepped gracefully out, even with her heels. She was glad she’d retrieved the other from the dumbwaiter before it had fallen. Whilst running in them may prove problematic, the ground was covered in shards of broken glass, marble and gold. There was probably lego bricks too, if she looked hard enough.

‘Bio-scan stored in the database, I’ve given you access to the whole palace,’ Traylia said, fastening a small data watch around the Doctor’s wrist.

‘The stewards have this,’ the Doctor mused, hovering her hand over it and watching it flash up with different destinations and information.

‘Yes, its the fastest way around the palace,’ Traylia said. She hugged the Doctor suddenly, flinging her arms around her neck.

‘Thank you, thank you so much, we’ll be indebted to you if you save us,’ Traylia said, sobbing quietly into the Doctor’s shoulder.

The Doctor patted her back awkwardly and River laughed silently behind them.

‘Do you know how the slingshot works?’ Traylia said, pulling away.

The Doctor stood next to River and set their data watches to the bunker.

‘Yeah, course we do.’

‘Do we?’ River whispered.

‘No,’ the Doctor whispered back.

Then the teleport activated and they disappeared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So when I was writing the bit about River shoving her face in the Doctor's shirt my boss came to my desk and I squeaked and hurriedly managed to minimise the screen. Writing fanfic at work is a risky business.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took me longer than usual to publish! I hope you enjoy :)

The lights flickered on as soon as they teleported into the bunker, both staggering a little from the strain of being de/re-materialised into another space. The Doctor wondered if this is how the TARDIS felt, it would certainly explain her temperamental behaviour. 

‘This place is candyland,’ River said, gaping open-mouthed at the massive expanse of the bunker. It was the size of an aircraft carrier and was full of weapons and transport vehicles. An antimatter proton ray stretched all the way up to the ceiling and the Doctor felt a shudder go down her spine. That thing could be used to completely annihilate a planet in a matter of seconds, before the occupants even knew they were there.

River was bouncing excitedly from one weapon to the other, throwing dust sheets off and running her hands lovingly over the machinery. Her excitement was tangible and the Doctor felt a pang deep in her chest. This was one of the few aspects of River’s life that she couldn’t be a part of. It didn't matter the size or the manufacturer. A weapon was a weapon and the Doctor had seen enough of those for a lifetime. For  _ several  _ lifetimes. 14 to be exact.

‘Oh come on, sweetie. Wipe that grimace off your beautiful face and appreciate the artistry!’ River said, bounding excitedly over to her and gripping the Doctor’s hand tightly. ‘The amount of work and talent and pure skill to go into creating any one of these. The people who developed them were geniuses.’

‘Imagine what they could have accomplished if they’d focused their energies on something more worthwhile,’ the Doctor said, gloomily. ‘On something that could create rather than destroy.’

‘Maybe they did,’ River said, nudging her gently. ‘I imagine that war would rather distract from the creative aspects of one’s life, but I expect they probably went back to it once the war was all over.’

The photon slingshot took ten panicked minutes to find and was eventually discovered hidden at the back of the room under a sheet. 

‘Right, how does this work?’ River said expectantly as the Doctor started to sonic it.

‘Relatively simple I think. Looks like you open a portal or a vortex or maybe a bit of both, load whatever it is you want to chuck onto it, and press the button. I think. Basically.’

‘Sounds relatively simple.’

‘Should be, in theory.’

The Doctor and River dragged the slingshot into the middle of the room so they had more space to work with and the Doctor carefully loaded the bomb onto it, the countdown moving ever so slowly downwards. Ten minutes left.

‘Right, load projectile, check.’

The Doctor started to program the slingshot, her fingers moving rapidly across the keypad and the machine started to hum and vibrate as it powered up. 

‘Where are you setting the coordinates?’ River asked, enraptured as she watched her wife work.

‘Three light-years away from this planet. There’s a area of space that’s completely uninhabited by any life at all, I’m sending it there. Hopefully. That’s the plan anyway.’

The machine suddenly emitted a burst of light and a portal began to open, the purple and blue swirls in the vortex spinning faster and faster as the slingshot powered up. Then it began to judder and vibrate and the Doctor had to grip onto the arm tightly to keep her balance.

‘Argh it’s not been used in so long it’s having problems!’ she cried, attacking the keyboard with her sonic. ‘Compensating for gravitational disturbances, resetting the flux capacitor, reversing the neutron flow and….’

The machine stopped juddering and began to purr, the vortex stable and beautiful in front of them.

The Doctor double checked the bomb and the coordinates she’d programmed but stopped with her finger on the button, suddenly looking sad.

‘What?’ River asked. ‘What’s the matter?’

‘Just wish Ryan was here,’ the Doctor said. ‘He’d have loved this.’

She sighed. 

‘Never mind. Sorry Ryan, maybe next time.’

She pressed the button.

‘YEET.’

* * *

When River woke up she was lying on the floor, slumped against the wall. She sat up slowly, her head foggy as she tried to remember what had happened. The slingshot had fired, catapulting the bomb, but years of unuse had made it unstable and the bomb had detonated in space, the shockwave flooding back through the portal and smacking into them, sending the two women flying through the air, hitting the back of the bunker with a  _ thud  _ that shook the machinery in the room.

The Doctor was sprawled next to her, limbs askew, still unconscious, and River could see a dark trickle of blood seeping from the back of her head, staining her blond hair red.

‘Hey,’ River groggily reached out a hand to grab the Doctor’s arm. ‘Hey, wake up.’

River could feel her body healing from the impact. She wasn’t completely Time Lord but she had learnt over the years that she’d inherited their quick-healing ability. All you needed to do was take a nap and you’d wake up feeling much better. It was a slow process though, and being awake and moving around didn't help much either.

_ ‘Hey.’ _

River managed to pull the Doctor towards her, enough for her to press her head against the Doctor’s chest and feel the gentle twin beats of her hearts.

‘Oh good, I’m going back to sleep now,’ she mumbled, slumping over her wife, one hand tightly gripping her arm.

* * *

When River woke up again there was a bright light above her and she squinted and turned her head. The dull throbbing had gone but she still felt hazy, not quite with it, the appealing allure of sleep still trying to pull her gracefully down. She could hear humming coming from somewhere, a soothing tune she didn't recognise that gently rose and fell and warmed her heart. 

‘Hey wifey.’

She opened her eyes again and saw the Doctor sat on a bed opposite her, hair a strange combination of grey and red with streaks of blonde peeking through, face utterly filthy and her clothes even more ripped than before. But her eyes were bright and her smile was wide and she was, if possible, even more beautiful than when River had first spotted her frozen in the doorway.

‘Wifey?’

The Doctor made a face. ‘Think Yaz taught me that one. Keep picking up on Earth colloquialisms. Every year they get worse.’

‘Like “yeet”?’

‘Oooh I did say that. Couldn’t remember. Ryan will be happy, I think.’

River sat up slowly, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. The room she was in was bright and clinically white. Stainless steel trolleys were pressed up against the wall and there was a tray with bandages on one of the units.

‘We’re in the first-aid room,’ the Doctor said, helpfully. ‘Traylia sent her guards down to the bunker when we didn't come up again and they brought us up here. I broke the slingshot but the bomb didn't hurt anyone. Well, apart from us. And apparently the building juddered a bit when it went off but all things considered I think I did pretty well.’

‘You did amazing, sweetie,’ River said, smiling. 

‘Thank the stars! You’re both awake,’ Traylia said, gliding into the room in her ripped skirts, hands flapping frantically. ‘I was so worried when they brought you up here! How’re you feeling?’

‘A bit battered but essentially okay,’ the Doctor said with a shrug. Then her expression became serious. ‘Have you had any luck finding the Arcanian Resistance?’ 

Traylia shook her head. ‘We brought up the Arcanian you tied up in the basement for questioning but he isn’t talking. Our communications systems haven’t come back up again either so we can’t call for help.’

‘How long has it been now since the bomb in the ballroom went off?’ River asked.

‘About three hours.’

_ ‘Three hours?’  _

That was the Doctor, sounding shocked. 

‘Yes, you were unconscious for two,’ Traylia said. ‘We’ve set up sleeping mats and blankets for those that need them in the ballroom. We’ve cobbled together an anti-gravity rig to stop any more debris falling from the ceiling and we’ve swept away all the glass so it’s safe in the ballroom now.’

‘What about the TARDIS?’ the Doctor asked.

Traylia shook her head. ‘It’s still at the bottom of the stairs but the doors are locked, we can’t get to it.’

‘And you’ve got deadbolt seals so I can’t use the sonic,’ the Doctor muttered, grumpily.

‘So what’s the plan?’ River asked, looking at the Doctor. ‘Interrogate the Arcanian?’

_ ‘Talk to  _ the Arcanian. Find out who’s in this resistance and where they are, find out which one of them has time travel technology and take it off them. They’re meddling in their own history and I don’t think they realise just how dangerous that is.’

The Doctor jumped off the bed and staggered a little, gripping hold of it tightly and waving off Traylia as she moved forward to catch her.

‘I’m fine. Just been a bit bashed today, no worries. You okay, River?’

River nodded and stood up. She could feel bruises forming in all kinds of places but she felt strong and ready to go. 

‘Be careful, please,’ Traylia said. She gestured to one of her guards. ‘Ajax will take you to the prisoner.’

‘Could we have a couple of minutes first please, Ajax?’ River asked, the Doctor frowning at her. 

‘Of course, I’ll be outside when you need me,’ the guard replied, nodding his head slightly. 

Traylia smiled at them both and they left the room, leaving the Doctor looking quizzically at River.

River closed the gap between them and hugged her wife tightly, loosening her arms a little when the Doctor gasped in pain as she squeezed something tender.

‘Um… you alright?’ the Doctor mumbled into River’s shoulder.

‘Me?’ River pulled away and placed her hands gently on either side of the Doctor’s face. ‘I’m fine, I’m not the one who looks like she’s about to collapse!’

‘Nah I’m good, just had a two hour nap!’

River kissed her gently and the Doctor responded, eyes sliding shut as she allowed River to press her up against the bed, the Doctor’s hands dropping to her waist.

She felt River’s hands in her hair, gently feeling for the lump under her skin where she’d hit the wall and she winched. 

‘Hmm, I thought so. You’re not healed yet,’ River said.

‘S’fine, probably as good as I’m going to get for the time being,’ the Doctor responded. ‘Now come on, get a shift on, we’ve got work to do.’

Ajax was waiting for them outside the door as he’d promised and he started escorting them through the palace. This part of the building had been untouched by the bomb and the finery was still intact. Diamond chandeliers and golden floorboards gleamed in the evening light and the Doctor frowned as she look around.

‘Have you been to Arcania?’ she whispered to River.

‘No,’ River whispered back. ‘But I know what you mean, I bet it doesn’t look like this.’


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry this took so long! The next chapter will be the last one and there will be a sweet (Thasmin) reunion scene with the Doctor and her fam. It's almost finished so you won't be waiting ages!

The Arcanian was handcuffed to a table in one of the offices when the Doctor and River walked in and he glanced nonchalantly up at them. The Doctor muttered something to the guards who exchanged concerned looks but left the room.

‘Oh, it’s you two, here to torture me?’

‘Look,’ the Doctor said, sliding into the chair opposite. ‘Here’s the thing. You’re angry that the Bralium’s took everything and essentially bankrupted your planet in the treaty. We totally get that.’

The Arcanian scoffed.

‘ _ But, _ ’ the Doctor continued. ‘That doesn’t mean you can jeopardise that peace by murdering innocent people. We’ve destroyed your bomb and we’re going to need you to hand over whatever tech you’re using to travel through time.’

‘I’m not going to do a thing to help you,’ the Arcanian spat. ‘Look at where I am! Look at the gold and the finery! The diamonds in the walls! On Arcania I live in a mud hut on the flood plains. Every year I lose friends and neighbours when their homes sink into the mud. You speak of peace and yet the Bralium’s treat us as though we’re still their enemies!’

‘I’ve noticed,’ the Doctor said quietly, and the Arcanian stared at her.

‘Your people don’t give a crap about others unless there is law and order in the galaxy,’ he said with disdain. ‘You wouldn’t do a damn thing to help me.’

The Doctor straightened up and leaned back in the chair, arms folded, River unable to work out what buddy cop she was trying to impersonate. 

‘You’re right,’ she said. ‘My people don’t give a crap. They’d probably have executed you for even  _ knowing  _ about unlicensed time travel technology.’

She leaned across the table.

‘But do you know something else about my people?’

The Arcanian was suddenly unable to meet her eyes.

_ ‘They’re not here.’ _

‘Amy! You’re doing an impression of Amy!’ River said delightedly, completely ruining the tense atmosphere in the room.

The Doctor sighed and River sat guiltily in the other chair at the desk.

‘Let’s start with your name,’ the Doctor said, pulling a sealed bag of custard creams out of her pocket and dropping them on the table in front of him. ‘And help yourself to a biscuit.’

‘Why on earth did you have those in there?’ River said, eyes wide.

‘In case I got hungry, obviously. Still not 100% on what food I like.’

‘You’re newly regenerated?’ the Arcanian asked. He took a bite of the biscuit then stared at it in shock. ‘This is delicious.’

‘New-ish. Now come on, name,’ the Doctor said, taking a biscuit herself.

‘Romaz. My name is Romaz.’

‘Nice to meet you, Romaz,’ the Doctor said. ‘Now let's try this again. I’m the Doctor and this is my wife River Song.’

Romaz waved the biscuit in acknowledgement. 

‘It’s obvious to us that your people got the poorer deal in the treaty. I imagine this was because you had nothing to bargain with? Or Arcania was so desperate for the war to be over that it would have agreed to anything at that point?’

Romaz nodded.

‘We want to help you bring your planet back to glory, but I need that time travel technology because you’re not using it correctly, you’re putting your entire species at risk.’

‘We’re using it fine,’ Romaz snapped.

‘No,’ the Doctor protested. ‘You’re not.’ She snapped her fingers. ‘See that?’

Romaz and River both stared at her and she groaned.

‘Urgh, course you don’t see it. There’s a delay in the fabric of spacetime. Nothing too awful, time is healing around it, but it probably means that  _ someone saw you  _ when you zipped into the past to get that bomb and its damaged the fabric of reality. You do that again and you risk tearing a hole so big it’ll never heal.’

River looked like she understood but Romaz looked confused.

‘You could damage your past so badly that your future could cease to exist,’ the Doctor protested. ‘Paradoxes upon paradoxes, your people would be destroyed in an instant. Now please,  _ tell me,  _ what technology are you using? A dimension cannon? Temporal displacement? Please don’t tell me it’s a vortex manipulator.’

‘Nothing wrong with those, sweetie,’ River said.

The Doctor kicked the leg of the table in frustration. ‘Cheap and nasty time travel,’ she muttered.

‘Are you taught to chant that at Time Lord nursery or something?’ River asked. ‘“What’s a vortex manipulator, class?  _ Cheap and nasty time travel, miss”.’ _

‘It’s a temporal displacement weapon,’ Romaz said. ‘We bought it from a Time Agent a few months ago and we’ve been practising using it.’

‘Time agent wasn’t called Krasko, was he? Tall, dark, not handsome, bit scruffy, serious racist.’

‘He didn't tell us his name, didn't even tell us how to use the weapon. We had to learn through trial and error.’

‘Mainly error, I’m guessing,’ River said. 

‘And where is it now?’ the Doctor asked.

‘Hidden, and I’m not giving it to you.’

She groaned. ‘Come  _ on.  _ I think we’ve established that my people aren’t the nicest bunch in the galaxy but the one thing we are  _ really really good at  _ is time. Time is our thing, we love time. Graham loves that I can just tell him what time it is no matter where we are in the universe. And we  _ know  _ when it’s  _ being abused.  _ Now, tell me, honestly, where is the displacement weapon because if you use it again you are going to create a paradox so big it’ll punch a hole in this galaxy and wipe out every planet in the system, yours included.’

Romaz hesitated, and then sighed. 

‘It’s hidden behind the walls in the Bralium ballroom. On the east side, behind the portrait of the Fourth Grand Duke of the Bralium empire. It was left there for me to transport the bomb.’

The Doctor breathed a sigh of relief and reached across the table to squeeze his hand. ‘Thank you. Seriously. You’ve just saved billions, I’m gonna let you finish the bag of biscuits.’

She stood up and turned to River. ‘Right, come on then wifey, treasure hunt time.’

‘Is that what you’re calling me now?’

‘Yes. I like it. Let’s go.’

* * *

Traylia was waiting outside for them and she raised her eyebrows expectantly as the two women exited the room.

‘He’s been radicalised,’ the Doctor said immediately. ‘I think he’s starting to realise that he’s made the wrong decision. I’m asking for leniency on his behalf, I know what your punishment is for terrorists.’

‘It’s a painless procedure, Doctor,’ Traylia said gently, but the Time Lord was already shaking her head.

‘I can’t let you do it, Grand Duchess. He’s made mistakes but in his own weird, convoluted way it was out of love. Talk to him, help him to understand. Persuade him to lead you to the band of rebels and spare his life.’

‘Doctor…’

‘You owe me, Traylia,’ she said firmly. 

There was an icy pause and the Grand Duchess nodded. ‘Very well, I will spare his life. What happens next?’

‘He’s told his where his time travel technology is. I’m going to retrieve it and get it far away from here, there shouldn’t be any more bombs or weapons coming through from the past.’

Traylia nodded and stepped into the room, her guards following her. River turned to the Doctor, eyebrow raised.

‘What?’

‘Nothing. Just - I find you more attractive when you’re laying down the law in this body than I did when you were men.’

The Doctor flushed. ‘Oh stop it, you.’

‘Make me.’

‘Maybe I will.’

* * *

The temporal displacement weapon was exactly where Romaz had said it would be, hidden behind the portrait of the Duke and enclosed in a quantum cell which made the Doctor roll her eyes in frustration.

‘Not seen one of these for years, super ancient technology. Designed to keep temporal weapons in a state of quantum flux to prevent them going off accidentally. Also serves like a little safe to stop other people from getting in.’

‘People like you?’

‘People like me.’

‘Easy to break?’

‘Just you watch me.’

The sonic made quick work of the wires keeping the quantum cell in the wall and the Doctor placed it carefully on the ground to activate the shutdown sequence, her deft fingers moving carefully over the wires and the controls whilst River watched. 

‘So, tell me about Yaz.’

The Doctor paused.

‘Huh?’

‘Yaz. You’ve mentioned her a few times. And Ryan. And also Graham. Tell me about them.’

‘Oh, well, they’re my fam.’

River’s eyebrows shot into her hair. 

‘Your  _ fam?’ _

‘Oh, another colloquialism, although they didn't teach me that. Actually, I’m not sure where I picked that up. Probably St Luke’s University.’ The Doctor spun round excitedly. ‘Did I tell you I worked there? For 70 years! I was a professor, like you. Taught loads of stuff. Can’t actually remember what they employed me to teach, just taught what I wanted.  _ And  _ I got an office. A really big one. And apparently I was a “ledge”.’

‘And your fam? How did you meet them?’

‘Oh I crashed through the roof of a train they were all on. You know how the TARDIS gets when I regenerates, she threw a right tantrum. Chucked me out! Rude.’

‘I feel like you’re avoiding my question,’ River said, squatting down next to her, the Doctor suddenly very interested in the wires. 

‘Not avoiding, just…’

‘Just?’

The Doctor sighed loudly. ‘Okay, fine, I am avoiding.’

‘Is it because you’ve got a crush on Yaz?’

‘Oh for - ‘

‘I mean it,’ River said, sternly. Then her expression softened. ‘You know we’re not exclusive, right? What with our messed-up timelines and my multitude of other spouses.’

‘Well don’t say it like that!’

‘Doctor,’ River insisted, gently. ‘If you like Yaz, you should have a conversation with her, take her on a date.’

‘I don’t even know how people have dates any more,’ the Doctor grumbled, fiddling with her sonic. ‘I mean look at us!’

River bent down to kiss her wife gently. ‘This is my favourite kind of date to have with you,’ she whispered.

The Doctor grinned. ‘Yeah, me too.’ 

The forcefield around the cell flashed and disappeared and the Doctor plucked the weapon out from inside, making fast work of dismantling it.

‘Now what?’ River asked. ‘We’ve stopped the culprit, found the weapon and the authorities are investigating. What do we do now?’

The Doctor looked up at her, a light flush across her cheek that made River chuckle.

‘Well… you do owe me a dance.’


	7. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LAST CHAPTER!
> 
> There is both River/Doctor AND Doctor/Yasmin in this. The Doctor's just got a lot of love to give okay? Enjoy!

The steward had eventually managed to contact the authorities and they’d made quick work of the doors, crews of emergency staff already sweeping the room to take the injured to hospital. One of them had tried to have a look at the Doctor but she’d waved them off.

‘You can’t see it but the back of your head is a bit of a mess,’ River said, scrutinising her. ‘Looks like a dye job gone wrong.’

‘Ta very much!’ she protested, realising too late that she’d copied Graham. 

Traylia found them sitting at the bar surveying the rescue effort. She arrived with two in her guards in tow and, after speaking briefly with the emergency staff, approached them.

‘He’s told us where the rebels are,’ she said. ‘I have a team going there now to capture them - and I know what you’re going to say, Doctor,’ she interjected when the Doctor opened her mouth. ‘They will be given a fair trial and the outcome will be whatever the jury decides. That is democracy. There is nothing I can do to change that.’

The Doctor closed her mouth and picked at the ruined hem of her jacket, only looking up when Traylia reached out to take her hand.

‘I want to thank you, Doctor,’ she said softly. ‘And you, Dr Song, for your assistance this evening. Without you the casualties would have been far worse and it’s frightening to think of how many people could have died. Is there any way I could repay you?’

‘The Arcanian’s are suffering,’ the Doctor said quietly, but with an edge to her voice. ‘I know that the peace treaty was signed by a predecessor a long, long time ago but you cannot deny responsibility for the actions of your people. This generation knows nothing of war. Help them, before it’s too late.’

Traylia nodded, and the Doctor knew she’d listened.

‘We will be continuing with the fireworks as planned, this evening,’ she said. ‘Please, feel free to go through my private quarters to go up to the roof. The view is better from up there.’

* * *

The roof offered a bright, brilliant view over the land and city below them and the Doctor felt River’s hand slip into her own as they stood looking up at the brilliant sky above them, stars shining for miles above their heads. 

Below them, in the palace courtyard, the guests who had escaped tonight’s escapade relatively uninjured were dancing slowly as the the band struck up a slow song, soft and sweet and beautiful. The Doctor found herself stepping into River’s open arms as they moved slowly together, the blonde’s arms over her wife’s neck, River’s hands resting on her waist. The Doctor closed her eyes and rested her forehead against River’s, the stress of the evening suddenly crashing into her as tiredness washed over her.

‘You’re so beautiful,’ River whispered and she opened her eyes, looking into River’s whose eyes were so dark it was almost impossible to tell what she was thinking. ‘Really. Honestly. You are.’

_ Almost  _ impossible.

The Doctor tilted her chin up as River’s lips met hers, warm and soft, tasting lipstick and wine. She felt her hearts thudding in her chest and something further down aching. It was clear, at least from the way that River’s hands were starting to travel up her chest towards her breasts and her tongue was gliding along the inside of the Doctor’s mouth, that her wife was feeling the same. 

‘We’re on a roof,’ the Doctor gasped when a hand found its way inside her bra, running her nipple through its fingers gently.

‘Exactly,’ River murmured. ‘No-one can see us up here. Unless anyone is looking through a satellite right now, in which case I hope they enjoy the show.’ 

She pulled away an inch, sensing her wife’s hesitation. 

‘We don’t have to,’ she said gently. ‘If you don’t want to I am more than happy to stick with dancing.’

‘What? No! It’s not that -’ 

The Doctor tugged her hair nervously. 

‘You haven’t done this before, have you?’ River asked.

‘Shut up, yes I have.’

‘But not in this body.’

It was a statement, rather than a question, and the Doctor nodded shyly. 

‘Do you want to?’

Another shy nod.

River backed her wife up against the wall and laced their fingers together as she kissed her. Her hands moved up to the Doctor’s blouse and she tentatively undid some of the buttons, feeling the soft skin beneath, gently cupping her breasts through the thin material. 

The Doctor gasped when River slipped her hand down the front of her trousers, fingers probing gently through the fabric of her underwear.

‘Better hold on, sweetie,’ she whispered huskily in her ear.

The Doctor gulped. Audibly.

* * *

The TARDIS was still safely at the bottom of the stairs when River and the Doctor made their way back down to the ballroom sometime later, the blue light glowing happily when it saw them approach. 

‘Can you give me a lift?’ River asked. ‘I’m at the Luna University now, feel free to pop in whenever you’ve got a free moment.’

_ Hush now, spoilers. _

The voice snuck into her head before she had a chance to push it away and the tear slipped down the Doctor’s cheek before she realised, River noticing immediately.

‘Oh,’ she said.

The Doctor looked down at her feet. 

‘You crossed your timeline…’ River said, suddenly realising. ‘You crossed your timeline to see me.’

The Doctor tried to lean nonchalantly against the door of the TARDIS but she misjudged the distance and ended up crashing into it instead. 

‘No biggie,’ she said, as casually as she could.

‘It’s a biggie,’ River replied, sternly. ‘It was dangerous and reckless and you shouldn’t have done it.’

‘I regret nothing,’ the Doctor said in a small voice and suddenly River grabbed her and hugged her tightly, pressing her face against the Time Lord’s neck and holding her there.

‘What was that for?’ the Doctor asked when River finally pulled away.

River kissed the tip of her nose. ‘For being you,’ she said, smiling and pushing open the TARDIS door.

‘Oh  _ look at you,’  _ she purred as she walked inside the blue box. ‘Verrry nice. Looking good.’

The TARDIS hummed in response and River programmed the coordinates, enthusiastically spinning the egg timer to send the ship into the vortex, leaving the brakes on so the room was filled with the ship’s grinding and groaning as she sped through time and space.

The Doctor hung back, leaning against the console, more than happy to let River fly. Not that she’d ever admit it of course, but she couldn’t deny River was the better pilot. Which was extremely unfair considering that  _ she  _ had taught  _ River  _ how to fly the ship. 

River opened the doors when the ship had landed and stepped outside, checking they were in the right place. The Doctor followed her and was immediately greeted by the Earth hanging in the sky, bright, blue and beautiful.

They’d landed in front of a tall, slanted tower which the Doctor recognised as Luna University’s School of Archeology. She took in River’s ruined dress, messy hair and filthy face and her wife grinned.

‘Oh don’t worry, they’re used to me turning up like this. Installed a shower in my office especially.’

The Doctor suddenly found herself unable to say anything, crushed with the sudden realisation that this was, more than likely, their last goodbye. 

‘I know what you’re thinking,’ River said softly, taking her hands. ‘And don’t you dare say goodbye like it’s the last time because I’d never accept it.’

Now  _ that  _ stung, and the Doctor found herself weeping silently. She wiped the tears away from her eyes, embarrassed. She never used to cry this much. She was sure she never used to cry this much. Not in front of people anyway.

River kissed the tear stained marks on her face gently, before moving onto her lips. The Doctor clinging to her wife’s waist, trying desperately hard to sear this moment onto her brain. 

But all things had to end, and too soon River pulled away.

‘Be happy, my love,’ River said, softly. ‘Don’t be afraid to open yourself up, don’t be afraid to feel love and let it in.’

She let go of the Doctor’s hands and turned away, smiling when she reached the foot of the stairs leading into the building.

‘Till the next time then, Doctor,’ she said.

‘I’ll see you around, Melody Pond,’ the Doctor whispered. And then she was gone.

* * *

Alone in the TARDIS and back in the time vortex, the Doctor allowed herself a moment of grief, collapsing to the floor of the console room and sobbing while the TARDIS hummed in sympathy around her. She wrapped her arms around her legs and rested her head on her knees, breathing awkwardly and in big hiccupy gulps, trying to remember the feel of her wife’s lips on hers, her hands on her waist, her fingers in, well, other places.

Yaz popped into her head again and she frowned and looked up at the central column.

‘What are you trying to do?’ she asked her ship, but for once it didn't respond.

The Doctor stood up slowly and wiped her eyes, inspecting her reflection. She probably had time to wash and change. In fact she knew she did, she was in a time machine, but she suddenly had an overwhelming ache in her heart to  _ be  _ with someone. 

The TARDIS programmed the coordinates to Sheffield before she did and there were happy shouts from outside before the TARDIS had even fully dematerialised, the doors opening before that familiar  _ thump  _ had indicated the ship had landed. The TARDIS was obviously keen to see them too.

‘Hi fam!’ the Doctor yelled, flinging her arms open. 

‘Doct _ what happened to you?!’ _

That was Yaz who was the first one in, dressed in a pretty black dress with a party hat on her head and another in her hand, mouth wide open and worry all over her face.

‘Ooh is that for me? I love hats,’ the Doctor said, taking it out of her hand and placing it on her head, the elastic digging into her chin uncomfortably.

‘You been busy, Doc?’ Graham asked, taking in her ruined suit, messy hair and ripped blouse.

‘Oh you know, this and that, the usual.’

‘You’ve got lipstick on your neck,’ Ryan said and the Doctor rubbed at it, inspecting the red mess on her fingers.

‘So I do.’

‘You’re covered in blood!’ Yaz protested, grabbing the Doctor’s arm and spinning her around so she could inspect the back of her head.

‘It’s fine, all healed now. Nothing to worry about,’ the Doctor said nonchalantly, gently lifting Yaz’s hand away from her hair and squeezing it tightly. 

‘So, what happened? Cause you look really nice. Aside from the dirt and the blood and the - um - lipstick,’ Ryan said. ‘I like your shoes.’

The Doctor looked down at her feet, the heels being the only part of her outfit to have properly survived. ‘Thanks! I think I’ve got the hang of walking in them now.’

As soon as she said that she put a step forward and the heel caught in the TARDIS grate, making her wobble awkwardly as she gripped the console for support.

She pulled a face. ‘Maybe not suitable inside the TARDIS though.’

Once the shoes were off she wriggled her toes and brought her heels firmly back to the ground. ‘Oh  _ man  _ that feels better. You ready for the fireworks? Best seat in the house.’

She manipulated the controls, the TARDIS responding under her fingers and the central column beginning to rise and fall as the ship dematerialised and began to move. 

‘Doctor,’ Yaz said quietly, coming to stand by her side at the controls. ‘What happened to you? It looks like you got blown up.’

‘I did! Well, a little, then the ceiling fell on me, then I got thrown into a wall. I’m alright though, promise.’

‘Why won’t you tell me what happened?’

The Doctor paused and looked at Yaz, really looked at her, saw the concern in her eyes.

‘I was invited to a New Year’s Eve party. There was a bomb and a plot to overthrow the government and start a war, I stopped it.’

‘And the lipstick?’

The Doctor shrugged and looked sheepish. ‘My wife was there.’

Yaz’s face fell.

_ Wait she’s sad, why is Yaz sad? No no no Yaz don’t be sad. _

‘Hey, what’s going on?’ the Doctor asked, nudging Yaz playfully with her elbow. ‘Told you I’d be back for fireworks didn't I?’

‘You didn't mention you were married.’

The Doctor realised that Ryan and Graham were listening in too, Graham looking at Yaz with something akin to…

_ Is that pity? _

‘It’s complicated. It’s really complicated. We don’t meet in the right order, it’s hard to explain. Ooh we’re here! Open the doors, Ryan. You’ve brought bubbly, Graham! Fantastic.’

Ryan and Graham opened the doors and happily looked out over the lights of London below them, the TARDIS hovering in the air over the London Eye, the crowd large and loud below them. 

‘Yaz, com’ere.’

The Doctor pulled Yaz against her, tucking her head on her friend’s shoulder and holding her tightly. She was smaller than River and fit better in her arms. She heard River’s voice in her head, reminding her to let love in and she gritted her teeth. It felt too soon after saying goodbye to River but she knew that if she said nothing now she never would. This was her moment and she couldn’t waste it. 

‘I’m not completely oblivious, you know,’ the Doctor whispered quietly in Yaz’s ear. ‘I know you’ve got feelings for me.’

She felt Yaz stiffen and she pulled back, wiping away a tear that fell down Yaz’s cheek.

‘I don’t do romantic relationships with humans,’ she said gently. ‘Not usually, they’re messy and someone always ends up getting hurt.’

‘I understand,’ Yaz said quietly, looking down at the Doctor’s bare feet.

‘Hey, I said  _ not usually.’ _

Yaz looked up at her, the glimmer of hope in her eyes.

Outside, the countdown started and Graham popped the cork on the bottle of champagne, pouring them all glasses. 

‘Come on guys! You’re going to miss it!’ he yelled back at them.

‘Does that mean…’

‘I can’t promise it won’t be dangerous, being with me,’ the Doctor said, suddenly finding that she was nervous.

‘You mean it isn’t dangerous already?’ Yaz said, smiling.

_ Five! Four! Three! Two! _

‘You know what I mean,’ the Doctor said, suddenly finding that they were smiling at each other, unable to stop.

_ One! _

As the fireworks outside exploded in the sky the Doctor leaned forward and pressed her lips to Yaz’s, her arms coming around her waist as Yaz wrapped hers around the Doctor’s neck. 

‘Yaz! Doc! You’re missing the - oh wait, never mind.’ 

Yaz’s lips against hers felt amazing and the Doctor felt dizzy, her hearts pounding against her chest as Yaz moved a hand up to her hair to tangle her fingers in it. The Doctor tasted like smoke and wine and she smelt like the perfume that Yaz kept in the bathroom. 

A particularly close firework exploded near them and the ship lurched to the side, throwing them apart, the Doctor only just catching Yaz around the waist before she fell to the floor.

‘Come on, we’re missing the fireworks,’ she said, eyes shining.

Graham and Ryan squeezed up so they could sit down with them, passing around the champagne glasses. Ryan gave Yaz a high five behind the Doctor’s back and Graham looked smug. 

‘Happy New Year, fam!’ the Doctor yelled, excitedly raising her glass in the air.

‘Oh! We got you a Christmas present, Doc!’ Graham said, reaching into his jacket and pulling out a small wrapped present. 

‘For me!’ 

The Doctor suddenly found herself close to tears as Graham dropped it into her lap.

‘It’s nothing special, but it’s from all of us,’ he said, squeezing her hand. 

The Doctor made fast work of the wrapping paper and pulled out the blue wool scarf with a rainbow pattern, feeling the softness of the material on her hands.

‘Oh wow,’ she whispered, wrapping the scarf around her neck. ‘This is  _ brilliant.’  _

‘You look great, Doc,’ Graham said. ‘Even with the whole “explosion chic” look you’ve got going on.’

‘Thanks, fam,’ the Doctor said, fingers gently playing with the fringe of the scarf, smiling happily.

‘You’re welcome,’ Ryan said. ‘It suits you.’

The Doctor grabbed Yaz’s hand and dropped her head onto her shoulder, suddenly exhausted. Around them the fireworks continued to light up the sky and Graham and Ryan whooped and cheered at the more impressive ones.

Then the Doctor started to snore softly.

‘She’s drooling on my shoulder,’ Yaz remarked. ‘Haven’t got the heart to wake her up though, she looks exhausted.’

‘I doubt you’d be able to if you tried,’ Graham said, remembering the time the Doctor had fallen asleep on his newspaper and he hadn’t been able to get it out from under her until she’d woken up again.

‘You look cute though,’ Ryan said, winking at Yaz.

‘I ship it,’ Graham said, earning an incredulous look from Ryan and Yaz.

‘What? Is that not a thing young people say nowadays?’

‘Yeah, young people,’ Ryan said. ‘Which you ain’t.’

The Doctor’s head lolled off of Yaz’s shoulder and she tilted forwards, Yaz wrapping her arm around her waist and pulling her back against her body, Ryan squeezing in so she was sandwiched between the two of them and couldn’t move.

‘She smells like smoke,’ Ryan remarked, wrinkling his nose. 

‘And my perfume,’ Yaz said. ‘Think she’s been raiding my bathroom cupboard.’ 

The fireworks continued to explode around them, lighting up the sky below their feet with their bright, vibrant colours. 

Yaz glanced down at the woman on her shoulder and realised her eyes were half open and she was gazing up at the moon, despite the beauty of the fireworks below them. 

‘You okay?’ she whispered softly so the men couldn’t hear.

The Doctor closed her eyes again and squeezed Yaz’s hand tightly in response, not trusting her voice to not give her away. 

‘Do you want to cuddle up with me this evening?’ Yaz asked, suddenly getting the impression that the Doctor probably didn't want to be alone right now. 

‘Cuddles with Yaz?’ the blonde mumbled sleepily. ‘Amazing.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's the end! Really hope I got everything tied up neatly and the plot made sense. I don't think I've ever actually finished a multi-chapter fic before! 
> 
> Please let me know if you enjoyed it. I do have another multi-chapter fic planned that will involve the Doctor turning herself human to hide from the Family. That will definitely be Thasmin.


End file.
